Bath sponge



Nov. 13, 1962 F. J. BROWN 3,063,081

BATH sPoNGE Filed sept. 1s, 1961 Fg: 5 INVEN TOR.

Fran A' J fawn BY yumlawunV/WW HTTORNEYS United States Patent Oice 3,053,081 Patented Nov. 13, 1962 3,063,081 BATH SPQNGE Frank J. Brown, Browns Fish Camp, Rte. 2, Tawas City, Mich. Filed Sept. i8, 1961, Ser. No. 138,875 l Claim. (Cl. 15222) This invention relates to bath sponges and more particularly to a sponge having flexible straps extending beyond the ends of the sponge and adapted to be grasped by the hands of a user to facilitate the users bathing.

It has been proposed heretofore to attach ilexible straps to the ends of a Sponge or washcloth and which could be gripped by a bather to enable him to scrub his back without the inconvenience of having to hold the sponge in his hand. One previously proposed sponge of the general class to which the invention relates has included ilexible ropes or rigid handles extending through the sponge and relying upon enlargements at opposite ends of the sponge to prevent the latter from sliding. The diiculty which is experienced with such constructions, however, is that the sponge soon becomes worn to such an extent that it is more ditiicult to prevent relative movement between the sponge and the straps than it is to slide the sponge along the straps. Another proposal has been to tie or otherwise secure the ends of iiexible straps to the ends of a sponge, thereby making it impossible for the sponge to slide along the strap. In such a construction, however, pulling on the free ends of the straps imposes tensile or stretching forces on the sponge and it is not uncommon for the sponge to be torn apart, thereby rendering the device inoperative.

An objective of this invention is to provide a bathing sponge having a flexible strap secured thereto and extending beyond opposite ends of the sponge so as to facilitate the use of the sponge in scrubbing ones back.

Another object of the invention is -to provide a bathing sponge of the character described wherein the strap is secured to the sponge in such manner as to prevent relative movement between the sponge and the strap.

Another object of the invention is to provide a bathing sponge having a ilexible strap extending from opposite ends of the sponge, the strap being secured to the sponge in such manner as to avoid the imposition of any tearmg forces on the sponge during its use.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be pointed out in detail or will become apparent from the following description when it is considered in conjunction with the appended claim and the accompanylng drawing, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a view partly in side elevation and partly in section of a bathing sponge constructed in accordance with one embodiment of the invention;

-FIGURE 2 is a top plan view of the sponge shown in FIGURE l;

FIGURE 3 is a sectional view taken on the line 3 3 of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 4 is a view similar to FIGURE 2, but illustrating another embodiment of the invention; and

yFIGURE 5 is side elevation of the apparatus shown in FIGURE 4.

Apparatus constructed in accordance with the embodiment of the invention shown in FIGURES l-3 comprises a generally rectangular sponge body 1 and a flexible strap Z secured to the sponge. The sponge 1 may be formed of any suitable material conventionally used in the making of sponges, such as rubber, cellulose, or the like, and preferably the sponge is made of material that can be molded while in a liquid or semi-liquid state. The materials mentioned above are suitable for this purpose, The flexible strap 2 preferably is formed of woven strands of synthetic relatively inelastic material such as nylon, for example, which is strong and durable and not subject to any adverse eifects due to repeated wetting.

As is indicated in FIGURES l and 2, the strap 2 is considerably longer than the length of the sponge 1 so that the strap projects a substantial distance beyond opposite ends of the sponge.

In the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG- URES l and 2, the strap Z is imbedded in and securely bonded to the sponge 1 along the entire length of the latter. One manner in which the strap may be imbedded in and secured to 4the sponge is by forming the sponge body in two separate halves in a mold or the like and by placing the central portion of the strap 2, while under tension, between the two sponge halves when the latter are in a somewhat plastic or tacky state, and then placing the two sponge halves atop one another with the strap sandwiched therebetween and permitting the halves of the sponge to adhere to one another and to the strap 2. Alternatively, the sponge 1 may be formed from two halves and secured together by a suitable glue or adhesive, the strap 2 being inserted between the two halves, again in stretched condition, prior to the halves being bonded to one another, so as to cause each of the sponge halves also to bond to the strap 2.

Inasmuch as the strap 2 is maintained under tension during the precess of its being imbedded within the sponge, it will be possible for a user to exert considerable force on the opposite ends of the strap without subjecting the sponge to any stretching forces. This is because the strap will be incapable of stretching and, therefore, no tensile forces will be imparted to the body of the sponge.

As a convenience to the user of the sponge, the free ends of the strap 2 may be provided with handles or knobs 3. Preferably, each handle 3 comprises a spherical ball 4 formed of cork, for example, and having a diametral slit 5 extending therethrough through which the strap 2 passes. It also is preferable that the handles 3 be capable of adjustment longitudinally of the strap 2 so as to be capable of being located at a distance from the sponge that is most convenient to the user. Accordingly, each handle 3 preferably includes combined strap holding and adjusting means which may comprise a wedge-shaped plug 6 that is adapted to be inserted in the slit 5 so as releasably to clamp the strap 2 within the handle 3.

To effect adjustment of the handle longitudinally of the strap 2, it is necessary only to withdraw the plug 6, slide the handle along the strap to the desired distance from the sponge, and reinsert the wedge 6 in such direction in the slit 5 that the larger end of the wedge is remote from the adjacent end of the sponge. In these positions of the parts, a user grasping the opposite han dles 3 tends to force the wedges 6 more deeply into the spheres 4 and, consequently, more tightly secures the ends of the strap in the handles.

In the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG- URES 4 and 5, the parts which correspond to the parts previously described are indicated by the same reference characters. In the modified construction, the sponge 1a may be a natural, iibrous material such as African loofah. This material is particularly durable and has passages or grooves running longitudinally through its body and through any one of which the strap 2 may be extended. To assemble the sponge body 1a with the strap 2, the latter is extended through the sponge so that the ends of the strap extend beyond the ends of the sponge body. One end of the sponge body may be sewn to the strap 2 by stitching 7 so as securely to anchor one end of the sponge to the strap. Thereafter, the

strap 2 may be held taut While stitching the opposite end of the sponge, as at 7a, to the strap 2. lnasmuch as the strap 2 is maintained taut during stitching to the sponge 1a, any tension applied to the strap at its ends will not subject the sponge to stretching forces.

The disclosed embodiments are representative of presently preferred forms of the invention, but are intended to be illustrative rather than deinitive thereof. The invention is dened in the claim.

I claim:

A bathing device comprising a sponge body member; an inelastic strap extending through said body member, said strap being fixed intermediate its ends to said body member and projecting beyond opposite ends of the latter, said strap being fixed to said body member under tension; a substantially spherical handle member adjacent each end of said strap and being diametrally References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,218,005 Schlemmer Mar. 6, 1917 1,914,796 vBadgley June 20, 1933 2,395,094 Booharin Feb. 19, 1946 2,691,787 Rosenwein Oct. 19, 1954 FOREIGN PATENTS 3,405 Great Britain 1892 19,125 Great Britain 1911 

